FIG. 8 and FIG. 9 are processing block diagrams of a conventional digital broadcasting transmission apparatus and a method therefor, and a digital broadcasting reception apparatus and a method therefor, complying with, for example: Associations of Radio Industries and Businesses, “Receiver for BS Digital Broadcasting” Standard (ARIB STD-B21, Version 1.1), pp. 3-4, FIG. 3-1 and FIG. 3-2 (enacted on Mar. 29, 2000).
In FIG. 8, reference numeral 11 designates a multiplexing section; 12 a scrambling section; 13 a transmission processing section; and 14 a timing information generating section.
In FIG. 9, reference numeral 21 designates a reception processing section; 22 a descrambling section; 23 a demultiplexing section; 24 an information source decoding/reproducing section; and 25 a synchronization managing section.
Processing on the transmitting side in the conventional digital broadcasting transmission apparatus will now be described with reference to FIG. 8.
In the multiplexing section 11, coded bit sequences 101 of image, voice and other data are multiplexed to generate a multiplexed bit sequence 103. At this point, timing information 102 such as decode timing, combination timing and presentation timing for a coding unit of image or voice (for example, an image frame for image, and a voice processing frame for voice) is generated in the timing information generating section 14 and multiplexed together. In the scrambling section 12, the multiplexed bit sequence 103 is scrambled to generate a scrambled bit sequence 104. In the transmission processing section 13, the scrambled bit sequence 104 is subjected to processing such as FEC (forward error correction), energy dispersal, convolutional coding, construction of transmission frames, and modulation to generate a transmission bit sequence 105, which is delivered on a transmission path.
The conventional digital broadcasting reception apparatus will be described with reference to FIG. 9.
In the reception processing section 21, the transmission bit sequence 105 is received and subjected to processing such as demodulation, reconstruction of transmission frames, Viterbi decoding, energy reverse dispersal and error correction to reproduce the scrambled bit sequence 104. In the descrambling section 22, the scrambled bit sequence 104 is subjected to descrambling to reproduce the multiplexed bit sequence 103. In the demultiplexing section 23, the coded bit sequences 101 of image, voice and the like constituting a selected program, and the timing information 102 are separated from among programs multiplexed in the multiplexed bit sequence 103. In the synchronization managing section 25, the decode timing and presentation timing of a coding unit in each coded bit sequence are determined on the basis of the separated timing information 102, and are inputted as a reproduction control signal 106 to the information source decoding/reproducing section 24. In the information source decoding/reproducing section 24, individual coded bit sequences are decoded and synchronously reproduced according to the reproduction control signal 106.
In addition, FIG. 10 is a processing block diagram of a conventional digital broadcasting transmission apparatus and a digital broadcasting reception apparatus disclosed in, for example, JP 2001-136496 A.
In FIG. 10, reference numeral 31 designates a broadcasting station; 32 image data distributing means; 33 data distributing means; 34 a receiving equipment; 35 image data confirming means; 36 data calling means; 37 and 38 buffers; 39 synchronizing means; 40 image data displaying means; and 41 data processing means.
In the digital broadcasting transmission apparatus and the digital broadcasting reception apparatus disclosed in JP 2001-136496 A, the broadcasting station 31 distributes image data and data separately. In the receiving equipment 34, both of the data are synchronously reproduced on the basis of synchronization information (comprised of a name of data to be synchronized with the image, an application name, a data size, and a processing running time) which is sent with the image data. In addition, a domestic server is located between the broadcasting station 31 and the receiving equipment 34. The domestic server temporarily stores the image data and the data, and then synchronously reproduces both of the data based on synchronization information (comprised of a name of data to be synchronized with the image, an application name, a data size, and a processing running time).
However, the above processing was performed in the conventional digital broadcasting transmission apparatus and the digital broadcasting reception apparatus shown in FIG. 10. As a form of reproducing a content (i.e., program) on the receiving side, a transmission bit sequence sent from one transmission channel was received to synchronously reproduce image, voice and the like constituting the content.
In addition, in the digital broadcasting transmission apparatus and the digital broadcasting reception apparatus shown in FIG. 10, the broadcasting station 31 distributed image data and data separately, but distributed voice data on the same transmission channel of the image data, as in the conventional examples shown in FIG. 8 and FIG. 9. For intermittently distributed data, synchronous reproduction with image could be achieved in this manner. However, in the case of distributing continuously distributed voice data on a transmission channel different from that for image data, it is inconvenient to perform decoding/reproduction by referring to synchronization information carried on the transmission channel different from that for the voice data in view of real-time and continuous processing. It was therefore difficult to realize a multi-language broadcasting service which substitutes a voice portion distributed on a certain transmission channel for voice distributed on another transmission channel or for voice received and stored in advance, and reproduces it.